Letter from the Editor

There is so much to say about this particular theme, and you guys are going to be doing all the talking through your submissions – We can’t wait!

Conversations is such a great theme. Not only is conversing engaging and fascinating (don’t you think it’s fascinating?), but when you really think about it, conversation takes place *everywhere*. The dialogue we have with the world around us is so surreptitious that we sometimes don’t realise our part in it.

Ever thought about the narrative of your Instagram account, or Snapchat, or WhatsApp? In isolation these little talk/pic bites (or should that be “bytes”?) of commentary may not seem like a typical story. However, when you place them into the wider context of your life’s narrative, you might see how they are telling a story about your emotions, your experiences, and your dreams. From the secret and declarative, to the accidental and intended, all conversations converge into an elaborate macrocosmos of interlacing narratives.

Rollick Magazine is all about stories, whether visual or literary, fact or fiction, and so it seems only fitting that we take a look at storytelling in its most basic form: The conversation.

If I were to think of one of the most memorable conversations from popular culture, it would have to be the final scene in Lost in Translation. Do you remember the scene? Bob Harris (Bill Murray) is on his way to the airport, when he spots Charlotte (Scarlett Johannson) walking by herself down a busy Tokyo street. It’s so early in the morning that the neon signs are still on, flashing in an almost invasive way. Bob jumps out of the cab, and follows Charlotte, getting her attention with a “Hey, you!”. She turns around and sees him, and there is so much going on in that moment. The two embrace and Bob whispers into Charlotte’s ear. As the audience, we don’t hear what he says. All we see is her response to his words. Her mood becomes somehow lighter. She smiles at him. She is still full of mixed emotions, but she is strengthened.

If you recall, there was a lot of speculation about the mysterious words that Bob might – or might not – have uttered to Charlotte in that scene. The buzz was so widespread that it became known in popular culture as “The Whisper Scene”. In recent years, tech savvy fans have isolated the audio to expose the secret of what Bob said that day.

I’m not going to ruin anyone’s sense of romance or fun by giving away that spoiler. My reason for not saying anything is not so much about being a nice citizen when it comes to spoilers and such (although in truth, it is that, too). Rather, I want to suggest the following:

The mysteriousness of that conversation *is* the point of that conversation.

The fact that Bob’s utterance is unknowable is why that conversation has so much power. Think about it. After being privy to all the minutiae of Bob’s and Charlotte’s time in Tokyo, we are suddenly excluded from their most pivotal and emotionally-charged moment!

That is the point.

If you don’t know what was said, you automatically start retracing their every interaction and exchange in your memory, seeking out the meaning. You examine all the moment(s) that made this one, single moment so compelling.

This, I believe, is the very essence of conversations. It is ingrained in the way we communicate with one another – whether we mean it to be this way or not. Sometimes to understand ourselves and our stories, we have to see the macrocosmos that our words create in the narratives we live out in the minutiae.

We look forward to exploring this theme with you over November and December.

With oodles of smiles,

Mel

As digital evangelist with a passion for all things wordy and visual, Mel founded Rollick Magazine to inspire people from across the globe to share their narratives about the world we live in. Mel is an avid illustrator, designer, and writer who likes to explore our new media horizons (think Blade Runner meets Minority Report minus the acid rain and Tom Cruise). Stories are Mel’s first love. She hopes Rollick Magazine is a place where you can belong, have fun, and be heard. You can follow Mel on Twitter at @melvanroyen.

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR

NEWLETTER

Rollick news, stories, and art delivered straight to your inbox!

Contemporary literature, art, and commentary on popular culture and society. From us, to you.

After a somewhat long hiatus, we are pleased to announce that our next issue will be Begin Again. This issue is all about fresh starts and new beginnings. It's all about what happens after a failure, falter, or fall. It's about perseverence, and striving, and hope.

The Winners of Our Most Popular Post Award - Somewhere & Conversations

The Most Popular Post Award for our Somewhere issue goes to Debi Crouson for her piece 'One'. Resonating with a strong sense of place and atmosphere, 'One' uses a reflective style to take the reader on a journey through experience and memory, before ultimately resting in the land of dreams.

The Most Popular Post Award for our Conversations issue goes to Chloe Muñoz for her poem 'Empty Lines'. This highly evocative poem, delineates the moment in which the narrator receives an unwanted phone call. The absence of speech shows how silence in a conversation can result in revelation and catharsis.

Please join us in congratulating Debi and Chloe on their well deserved awards! We are so thrilled to have you represented in Rollick Magazine. Thank you for trusting us with your wonderful work!